Syrian businesses in Turkey: The pathway to refugee integration?

In March 2016, there were some 4,000 formal businesses in Turkey established by Syrians. Today they number 6,000, with 760 established in the first seven months of 2017 and 2,000 expected by the year’s end. Estimates of total Syrian businesses (or firms), including informal ones, range from 10,000 to over 20,000. Starting in 2013, Syrian firms consistently accounted for upward of 25 percent of foreign firms registered in Turkey, with the latter accounting for around 10 percent of the over 60,000 firms established annually in Turkey. Their presence is especially visible and proportionally much more significant in areas bordering Syria.

The more data and analysis are generated on Syrian firms in Turkey, the clearer becomes their positive impact on refugees and host communities. “Another Side to the Story: A market assessment of Syrian [small and medium-sized enterprises] in Turkey” by Building Markets and its partner the Syria Economic Forum, notes that Syrian firms on average employ 9.4 people—Turks and Syrians—with 55 percent planning to hire eight people on average over the coming year. Syrian business owners are well educated with 67 percent having higher education and are committed to Turkey—39 percent plan to start another business there and 76 percent intend to keep their businesses after the war while expanding in Syria and beyond. Indeed, 39 percent see regional trade as the primary opportunity in Turkey followed by 23 percent each for serving Syrian refugees or the Turkish market.

Support for the growing numbers of Syrian entrepreneurs will strengthen the integration of refugees as contributing members of society and help decrease tensions. More attention needs to be paid to this by foreign donors and will need continued concerted efforts by Turkish decisionmakers in government and the private sector. Looking forward, Gunes Asik of TOBB Economics and Technology University notes, “New policies could have a particular impact on the younger generation of refugees, most of whom are bilingual and have a strong stake in creating new lives for themselves in Turkey.”

This blog was first launched in September 2013 by the World Bank in an effort to hold governments more accountable to poor people and offer solutions to the most prominent development challenges. Continuing this goal, Future Development was re-launched in January 2015 at brookings.edu.